You just can't help wondering who this film is for. Yes, it's a cartoon, but there really is a horror film here struggling – and mostly managing – to get out.

Poor little Coraline (voiced by Dakota Fanning) is largely ignored by her self-centred parents (Teri Hatcher and John Hodgman).

With nothing else to do, she sets about exploring the weird old house they've moved into, and it's not long before she's found a secret passage into a bright, alternative world... a world where her parents are loving and attentive.

A little bit of wish-fulfilment?

But then it all goes sour, with the other mum and dad revealing
the ghastly secret behind their apparently loving compliance. Will Coraline escape with her soul? Will the viewers come out from behind the settee? It's a nasty tale very well told and one which stays with you as you try to make sense of it all.

It's tempting to dismiss it all as bonkers, but sinisterly it strikes all the right notes in a masterful piece of disturbed and disturbing cinema.

Phil Hewitt ****

DVD rental supplied by Blockbuster. For details of other new DVD releases see www.blockbuster.co.uk


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